Not Your Usual Valentine’s Day
As nation after nation reels from the effects of war, and families and relationships splinter with interpersonal conflicts in every community all over the world, we at Olympic View Friends Church would like to invite you to a day of peace, worship, witness and prayer. As an act of reconciliation within our own community, and a testimony to the reconciling and peacemaking power of the Cross, please consider making Valentine’s Day a “Peace Sabbath.” If appropriate, take the day off work or school. Use this as a day of worship and witness.
The world around us is watching to see if Christians will embody the Truth and Love that characterizes a life in the Spirit. As followers of Christ, we are bound to God in such a way that the reasons for war and strife no longer exist. We live into this truth imperfectly, but are called more and more to be a community that lives according to the Power and Love of the Holy Spirit, relying on the armor of God rather than the weapons of this world. All of us have been touched in one way or another by torn relationships, war, or the violence of being prejudiced and demonized. Yet, the love of Christ calls us to offer love freely. So, as a rejection of the commercialized ‘love’ that typifies Valentine’s Day, and a witness to the life changing Love of God in Christ, Olympic View Friends Church will be opened to our community – especially the disenfranchised and those who would consider us their enemies. We expect nothing in return – our joy is to live faithfully as “Christ’s Ambassadors” by administering the “ministry of reconciliation” for which we have been commissioned (2 Corinthians 5:17-21).
Please share God’s love and peace with us on February 14th (Valentine's Day) as we celebrate this Peace Sabbath as an act of witness. Olympic View Friends Church will be open for prayer beginning at 9am and we will conclude our day with a free community meal at 6:30pm. The schedule will be as follows:
9am-5pm: Open Prayer Vigil
5-6pm: Seminar: “Quaker Peace and Justice”
6-6:30pm: Gathering for Worship
6:30pm: Shared Community Meal
By the way, I am sure that thought of losing a special date with your loved one is distressing. So, I encourage you to take your ‘honey’ out for a nice evening the day before or after Valentine’s Day (the restaurants are less crowded that way, anyway…)!
The world around us is watching to see if Christians will embody the Truth and Love that characterizes a life in the Spirit. As followers of Christ, we are bound to God in such a way that the reasons for war and strife no longer exist. We live into this truth imperfectly, but are called more and more to be a community that lives according to the Power and Love of the Holy Spirit, relying on the armor of God rather than the weapons of this world. All of us have been touched in one way or another by torn relationships, war, or the violence of being prejudiced and demonized. Yet, the love of Christ calls us to offer love freely. So, as a rejection of the commercialized ‘love’ that typifies Valentine’s Day, and a witness to the life changing Love of God in Christ, Olympic View Friends Church will be opened to our community – especially the disenfranchised and those who would consider us their enemies. We expect nothing in return – our joy is to live faithfully as “Christ’s Ambassadors” by administering the “ministry of reconciliation” for which we have been commissioned (2 Corinthians 5:17-21).
Please share God’s love and peace with us on February 14th (Valentine's Day) as we celebrate this Peace Sabbath as an act of witness. Olympic View Friends Church will be open for prayer beginning at 9am and we will conclude our day with a free community meal at 6:30pm. The schedule will be as follows:
9am-5pm: Open Prayer Vigil
5-6pm: Seminar: “Quaker Peace and Justice”
6-6:30pm: Gathering for Worship
6:30pm: Shared Community Meal
By the way, I am sure that thought of losing a special date with your loved one is distressing. So, I encourage you to take your ‘honey’ out for a nice evening the day before or after Valentine’s Day (the restaurants are less crowded that way, anyway…)!
posted by Jon at 6:27 PM
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